Wild horses have lived in Mesa Verde National Park for many years and are part of the park's natural landscape and history. Each year, thousands of park visitors enjoy seeing the wild horses, as evidenced by the videos and photographs of these beautiful horses that are regularly shared online.

The Park Service has stated that it will decide how to manage the horses based on the comments it receives from the public. Now is our opportunity to encourage the National Park Service to humanely manage these wild horses with PZP birth control, just as it has successfully managed the wild horses of the Assateague National Seashore in Maryland for more than two decades.

The wild horses of Mesa Verde National Park are part of this area's natural landscape and history. They are also an important part of the visitor experience. Each year, thousands of park visitors enjoy viewing the wild horses, as evidenced by the videos and photographs of these beautiful animals that are regularly shared online.

Urge the National Park Service to create a management plan for the wild horses that preserves this unique and historic herd in Mesa Verde National Park and protects their wild, free-roaming behaviors, while managing their numbers through the use of humane and reversible fertility control. The National Park Service has had great success managing a similarly sized wild horse population in the Assateague National Seashore using PZP birth control. The Assateague horses have been managed using PZP for 20 years without a single removal.

Urge the National Park Service to establish the following as guiding principles for managing the horses:

Protect archaeological sites by creating fence barriers to keep horses away from sensitive areas.
Educate staff and visitors about wild horses.
Preserve natural behaviors and natural social structures of wild horses and manage their numbers utilizing safe, humane and reversible PZP fertility control.
Allow the time necessary for a PZP fertility control program to reduce population numbers over time.
Prohibit any population suppression techniques that are not reversible and/or alter natural behaviors. These include hormonally based fertility control drugs, experimental drugs with deleterious side effects and manipulation of sex ratios, which alters behavior and natural social band structures.
Prioritize the use of remote darting or bait and/or water trapping for application of PZP. If removals do occur, bait and/or water trapping should be used as a less intrusive alternative to traumatic helicopter roundups.
Ensure fencing within the Park does not inhibit the natural migratory patterns of wild horses in the park.
Improve the distribution of the wild horse population within the park through range improvements.

Saturday February 23, 2013, 6:40 pm
Leter mailed off today. Thefederal and state governments have proven that they are more than happy to round up the wild horses and burros, despite what the majority of people want. I fear for the wild horses/burros the government has stockpiled, they will probably be slaughtered once tbe slaughterhouses here open. Cross your fingers for the horses, they need our prayers.

Friday March 1, 2013, 4:01 pm
The cruelty of the human seems endless. We must end this. Laws with stiff fines and also prison. Not seem to understand another language. Today I got a story told and asked ForceChange.org where to sign the petition to stop cruelty exercised on the wild horses that separate the foals from their mothers, they throw down a group of humans not people, because they can be said to be persons, and then mark them by cutting them. It is cruel that reaches the extent of disease. Facing beings and animals or people are safe.

Friday March 1, 2013, 6:27 pm
OK wait a minute. So what is the meaning of "NATIONAL PARK" ? Are you not the ones who supposed to be helping and protecting the wild animals.Why this US Federal Government seems to not understand the laws by protecting and saving the wild horses means you save the civilization and it's inhibitants/ The way the Government people treats wild horses are so barbaric. They seem to have no rules when it comes to murder/butcher of wild horses and their dissapearance. US people please show that you care about the other living beings as well. These horses are not commodities. They are living beings just like you & me. Treat them with kindness & compassionate. Not with the Brutality.